Garment stretcher and presser.



L. 1. WIDNESS. GAHMENT STRETCHEH AND PREssER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE I2. ISI?.

Patented J une 25, 1918 INI/mmf? L fM/Idness A TTU/NVE IS LAWRENCE J. WllI1')1\`l'I*3S,` OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

GARMENT STRETCHER AND PRESSER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 25, 1918.

Application filed `Tune 12, 1917. Serial No. 174,231.

To all 'zo/1,0m t may concern:

Be it known that I, LAWRENCE J. NVID- Nnss, a citizen of the United States, and resident of the city of New York, borough of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Garment Stretcher and Presser, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to garment hangers or the like and has particular reference to devices for hanging or treating mens suits or other garments.

Among the objects of the invention is to provide a device for holding a pair of trousers in such a manner as to form and maintain creases at the front and back of the legs and to apply sufficient tension or stretch to remove all wrinkles or bagging.

Another object of the invention is to provide a garment hanger including a nozzle in the form of an auxiliary bar for supporting an extra pair of trousers as well as a coat and vest.

Another object of the invention is to provide a stretcher including a frame with means to adjust the space between the side portions or legs of the frame in accordance with different widths of trousers.

With the foregoing and other objects in view the invention consists in the arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed, and while the invention is not restricted to the exact details of construction disclosed or suggested herein, still for the purpose of illustrating a practical embodiment thereof reference is had to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same parts in the several views, and in which Figure 1 is a front perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional detail on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Figs. 3 and 4 are horizontal details on the corresponding lines indicated in Fig. l.

Fig. 5 is a rear elevation of the upper portion of the device shown -in Fig. 1, but with the binding clips loosened; and

Fig. 6 is a simpler modified construction i of my invention.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings I show a garment presser and stretcher including a frame having side bars 10 and 11 connected at their upper ends to a relatively fixed jaw 12 of a clamp whose other jaw is indicated at 13. The upper ends of the bars 10 and ll are connected to the fixed jaw 1Q by means of pivot screws or bolts 1li providing for relative movement of these bars toward and from each other at their lower ends, but said lower ends are held normally spaced from each other to a graduated or predetermined extent by means of a bendable bar 15 having its ends secured to the lower ends of the bars by screws or pivots 16 of any suitable construction, but constituting a permanent' connection. By straightening the bar 15 the side bars 10 and 11 are forced farther apart, or by bending the bar upwardly to a greater extent the bars are drawn toward each other whereby the distance between the bars may be adjusted to the width of the trousers legs.

The relatively fixed and movable jaws 12 and 13 are resiliently connected by means of a hanger hook 17 having two Shanks 1S connected to the central portions of the respective jaws. The normal tendency of the bent portion of the hook is to throw the movable jaw forwardly away from the fixed jaw as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2. The sliding link 19 operates along the Shanks 1S to hold the jaws close together so as to grip the ends of the trousers legs or other garments to be pressed and supported thereby.

Hinged along the outer edges of the relatively fixed bars 10 and 1l are movable hars or wings 20 and 21 which are adapted to swing' around the axes of their hinges so as to lie approximately in the same plane as the bars 10 and 11. See the dotted lines in Fig. el.. The hinges for this purpose are indicated at 22and may be of any suitable construction.

To introduce a pair of trousers `into the presser and stretcher the device is laid down flat on its back and the wings 20` and 2l are thrown open and the link 19 is slipped up onto the hook 17 so as to releasethe movable jaw 13. The ends of the trousers legs are then put squarely together and inserted between the movable jaws 12 and 13 with the edges or creases of the legs laid flat upon the fixed bars l() and ll, the edges ol.' the trousers legs being moistened somewhat to facili tate the creasing and. pressing action. The clamp is then closed snugly upon the ends of the trousers by slipping the link 19 down the shanks 18. With the ends of the trousers Vthe bars: tightly upon those portions yofl the trousers legs tobe creased.

The free ends of yeach` clip Y are. preferably bent away@ from .each other?v to facilitate the attachment of.` the fclipstoll bindingfuposition.

AfterA the. wings.- arev thus `closed xand locked by means vof the clips23,v a spreaderfbar'f25 having xedfconnection at 26 with the Wing 20 is putin place, its freeendbeinglforced upwardly beneathlan .undercut edge off'the cleat 27 carriedbytthe wingl21. :Theconnected end :26 isffa'dapted toibearagainst a flXed abutment-28 v.to .give sufiicientresistanee to the spreader. `iTheaction ofthis'bar25 is twofold :l First, ,it serves toieoperate'- withthe bar 15 to spread theffree ends ofy the iframe and it also coperates .with the 'cleat 231:0 hold the win-gs.; against ortoward thebars 10 and 11- and in thesameplane. .'l`he;bar.25= is longer than the shortestdistance between the abutment. and cleat: andy hence when "the etree endof the'barisiforced beneath the 'cleat the bar acts to force the `legy portionsof the4 frame apart and alsoinsuresfthat .thebarwill remain in place v by fffrictional contacty off: the cleat. It will thus be.y seenthat the.v trousers will not-only be pressed and creased but will be stretched both sflongitudinally and flaterally to remove all wrinkles and bagging.

A I 'nowfrefertothe. auXiliary.garment` supportfshown in Figs. v1;andl6,fthefsame comprising 1atransverse bar 29- having loopsf30 bent 1parallel-to? the .main portion offthefbar and extending thence .downward parallel to eachotherat 31- and connectedjpreferably to `the bolts114. The maini bar' 29" is'thus arranged-in avvertical plane .tothe rear `ofthe main plane of the hanger and the planef-of the parallel fportions'a 31. *This bar 29 vServes immediately @as f a support*` fori an extra .pair

-offtrousershung'fuponfthasame f in folded position,.and the lloops' 30;-serve to supporta coatandvestor other similar garment. It is obvious that thisrdevicej in-.substantiallythe same "formas that illustrated` -may-fbef made 0in larger or smaller sizes to adapt it for l, pressing or stretching ties, soarfs, and any `other desired garments. Furthermore the .device .l is. .of a-relatively cheap and simple construction and is one adapted for easy and Vrapid` manipulation for the` purposes indicated.

LI claim: f

1. A garment presser and stretcher oomprising side bars, wings hinged tothe side bars and havingy their upper ends terminatingshort of the upper ends ofI ,the saidbars,

means for locking the wings closed, twor parallell `cross bars, `saidcross' bars lboeing 4on oppositesides of the Aupper ends ofthe-side bars' and to oneof which the sa-id upper. ends ofthe side bars l are pivoted, aIV hanger hook having integral resilient Shanks secured to" thevcr'oss barsand normally holding the' bars away-from each other, a link slidable on the Shanks offthehhangerf hook-and serving yto hold thesaid bars close togetherythefbars."

hanger vand f link forming Ia clamp, I and meansiforspreading thel lowerlends of the side-bars.

2. ln a garment lpresser and stretcher,N side bars, a lclainpat-'vthe upper endofthe side bars and to-one member of which the upper ends vof the y-siol`e bars lare pivoted, Vwings hinged tothe side bars, flexible loops mounted on the'` 'sidebars,` and spring clips carried byl'thesaid loopsl'forclamping thefwings in closed position, the freek ends of theclips being bent to form handles tofacilitateoperating them.

`='lhe herein described-garment vpresser and stretcher comprising apair of--side bars,

a clamp, to -one--memberof which thevfupper ends ofthe sidebars are pivoted, a-pairof wings, oneor each bar,A avplurality of hinges connecting the outer edges ofrespective pairs ofi-bars and wings providing for the-move`` ment ofqeach wing around a; longitudinal axis'v into substantially ythe same plane A asv its bar to introduce v al garment, a lplurality of spring clipsearried by each'barand adaptedl to A*flexibly* embrace v`such bar and its wing when the wingv is vin closed position, a benfdable bar connecting the lower ends'of theside bars'fand'serving to determine the normal distance between them, an undercut cleat on one wing, and a rigid spreader barv secured to one wingand engaging the said cleat when the wings are in closed position'to place vvthe same under transverse tension.

y LAWRE`NCE1=J."WI DNESS.

mtefefthlmmtomt may-oembltelneforf Mefcents. each, by addresslngahe jcommissioner of Patents.

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